Sixers' Mike Muscala ruled out vs. Celtics: Who gets the minutes?

Sixers' Mike Muscala ruled out vs. Celtics: Who gets the minutes?

Welcome to night one of the small-ball Philadelphia 76ers. While we hold out hope that Wilson Chandler can return from his hamstring injury sooner than later, the latest Sixers player to be bitten by the injury bug is forward Mike Muscala.

While Muscala was doubtful coming into the game, Keith Pompey of the Philly Inquirer revealed the team has officially ruled out the forward for Tuesday’s game against the Boston Celtics.

While McConnell will almost certainly pick up some extra work, the injury to Muscala could also lead to rookie sharpshooter Landry Shamet getting additional run. Both players would be a key part of potential small-ball lineups against the Celtics.

Furkan Korkmaz could also find his way into the mix, and although he’s technically a shooting guard, he’d add some size at 6-foot-7. Muscala is expected to fill the stretch-four role Ersan Ilyasova held last season, so adding a shooter to fill those minutes makes sense.

Time will tell, but regardless of how you look at it, Philly is almost certainly going to be playing small quite a bit on opening night.